One Night in Denmark
by A.Lindsay-Marquais
Summary: Buffy wakes to find herself not in Kansas or Sunnydale, anymore...
1. One night in Denmark

  
Summary: Buffy wakes to find herself not in Kansas or Sunnydale, anymore...  
  
Disclaimer: All characters are the property of Joss Whedon, GOD of all   
things Buffy. I am merely an emulator of his all mighty greatness. Hee.  
  
Time Frame: After "The Gift", consider this your spoiler warning!  
  
Rating: PG to PG-13: for adult language and content.  
  
  
  
  
" O God! I could be bounded in a nutshell, and count myself a king of   
infinite space,were it not that I have bad dreams."  
- Hamlet, Act 2, Scene 2  
  
  
She moves swiftly towards consciousness, her movements in sleep hindered,   
as if she is under water. A heavy weight seems to rest on her chest,   
pressing down harder and harder until the air is forced completely from her   
lungs. With a gasp of alarm, a harsh and desperate intake of air- Buffy   
Summers sits bolt upright in her bed and screams.  
  
Breathing quickly, she put a hand to her chest, as if to feel for the   
physical pressure of moments before. It's then that she notices the bed that   
she is in, is not her own. The sheets of creme satin, and coverlet of heavy   
red velvet barely cover her deshabile. Involuntarily, she pulls the bedding   
closer as she looks about the room that is clearly nowhere near her own.  
  
A discreet tap at the door, distracts her from her perusal of the acres of   
bed that are visible in the minimal light. Before she can even find her   
voice to answer, the door swings open and a bustling figure swathed in black   
robes enters with a tray in hand.  
  
"Mistress, it's time to meet the day" a familiar voice says, as a tray   
containing a cup of what appears to be hot chocolate and a scone is placed   
on her lap. Staring dumbly at the tray, she is blinded when the heavy   
curtains that have been blocking the morning light are thrown back and other   
bustling figures enter the room.  
  
"Um..." she begins, her voice cracking as she narrowed her eyes to slits to   
see the woman at the window.  
  
"Yes, mistress?" and the light glaring from behind threw her whole face into   
shadow as she moved closer to the bedside and Buffy.  
  
"I..." and her voice trailed off as she looked up into the warm, blue,   
inquiring eyes of Tara.  
"Tara?"  
  
" Yes, mistress?" she asked quizzically, twitching her skirts. " You'd best   
rise, Lady- the King and Queen await you."  
  
" I don't understand, Tara. There was a fight, and Dawn was bleeding and I   
fell, and I...I died." Buffy answered on a whisper, pulling her feet up to   
her chest,holds herself a moment before hissing. "I died AGAIN!"  
  
" My Lady, I am sure it was but a dream, " Tara responded with a humoring   
smile as she stroked Buffy's arm. "Come you must dress, your Lady Mother is   
expecting you in the Great Hall."  
  
"My Mother...?" Buffy looked up suddenly in horror and shakes her head. "no,   
that can't be."  
Tara was nodding as she pulled Buffy from the bed and thrust her toward the   
gathering ladies who were gathered around a steaming tub of water.  
  
"I assure you, Lady, it IS so, and you must hurry or we shall be late."  
  
******  
  
  
The sojourn in the tub was a whirlwind of activity as the ladies dressed   
her hair and chattered around her. Buffy sat in a daze, still unable to   
interact, her mind unable to comprehend. This had to be a dream....or something  
worse. Resolving to find out, Buffy steeled herself and turned to face Tara,   
who stood with a large blanket to recieve her when she stepped from the tub.  
  
"Tara, where are we?" she finally asked preparing herself for the worst.  
  
"Lady, do you toy with me?" Tara asked as she dried her off and began to   
pull an underdress over her head. " We are in Denmark, where else would we be?"  
  
" Hello? Sunnydale???" Buffy answered, her reply muffled as a black overdress   
was thrown over head and the lacing began.  
  
" Lady, I know not of where you speak?" Tara replied, as she stepped back to   
survey her handiwork. Circling around she twitched the skirts in place as the  
other ladies-in-waiting added jewelry to Buffy's hair and neck.   
  
" I don't understand, how long have I been here?" Buffy asked as her lacing was redone  
on one sleeve at Tara's direction. Annoyed she waved the woman off as soon as she finished  
to follow Tara out of the room, skirts trailing the stone floor behind her.  
  
" Lady, you have been here your entire life, of course" Tara said, and then stopped to   
look more closely at Buffy. " Are you feeling well? You've not been yourself since your  
return from Wittenberg for your father's funeral. Is all well with you Lady?" She put  
both hands to cup Buffy's face and meet her gaze.  
  
Frustrated and flustered, Buffy pulled back, pulling Tara's hands away with her own. Her  
heart sank at the mention of her father's death. But her mother was alive? Surely there  
was some mistake. It all suddenly became overwhelming,the room started to spin a moment  
and she stepped back dizzily, a hand to the stone wall beside her to steady yourself.  
Tara reached out, but Buffy pulled back.  
"Don't touch me!"  
  
Instantly contrite, Tara stepped back primly.   
"Yes, of course, Lady. However, we must be going to meet your Lady Mother and the King."  
  
Buffy leaned back against the wall. Gathering her thoughts, and some strength from the  
cold stone wall supporting her, she closed her eyes. In her mind's eye, she saw her sister  
dripping blood, and a huge hole being rent in the sky. She knew that she had gone into  
that space in place of her sister, exchanging her life for Dawn's. She remembered, standing  
at the grave of her mother, feeling more empty than she ever thought possible. She could see  
herself, letting Riley go and never saying goodbye. She thought of Angel, and how they made  
love for the first time. And of Giles, who had supported her through everything and Willow   
and Xander and Tara....  
Her eyes snapped open. Tara stood looking at her curiously, respecting her wishes to not  
be touched. Tara was in this place. If she was, then perhaps the others would be too. Together  
they would solve this riddle and somehow she would get back to Sunnydale. In the meantime, it  
would be in her best interest to play along. Stilling a moment she recalled something very   
important. Her MOTHER was waiting.  
  
"Tara, take me to my mother."  
  
  
(more to follow)  
  
  
  
  
  



	2. Part, the second

  
  
  
"Queen Gertrude: O! what a rash and bloody deed is this!  
  
Hamlet: A bloody deed! almost as bad, good mother,  
As kill a king, and marry with his brother.  
  
Queen Gertrude: As kill a king!  
  
Hamlet: Ay, lady, 'twas my word "  
  
~ Hamlet, Act III. Scene IV  
  
  
  
*********  
  
"Tara, take me to my mother."  
  
Tara nodded agreeably before answering. " Certainly, Mistress." Gathering   
her own black  
skirts, she led the way through a maze of damp hallways, Buffy trailing   
behind. The hangings  
were all swathed in black, and mirrors covered all long the dark hallways.   
Buffy frowned a bit but bit her tongue when tempted to ask about this. No   
doubt this had to do with her "Father" 's death.  
  
She was about to ask how long it was going to take them to get to the Great   
Hall, when they  
entered a small antechamber full of portraits. Her breath caught in her   
throat and she stopped dead as she caught site of a very familiar face,   
peeking through a swathe of black  
fabric. Stepping forward quickly, she grabbed hold of the fabric and pulled   
it from the enormous portait that it covered. Revealing as it fell, a very   
medieval looking nuclear family- who very obviously included her Mother,   
herself, Dawn and the face that she had seen peeking through the hanging-   
Rupert Giles.  
  
" Mistress..." Tara began, taking the fabric from Buffy's hands.  
  
" Don't call me that!?" Buffy snapped, staring at the picture. "Is that my   
family??" Buffy turned to watch Tara gather the fabric and hand it off to a   
servant she summoned from the shadows.  
  
"Very well, Lady Anne " Tara responded meekly. " To be sure it is, Lady.   
Your father was  
a fine man, and a good King. Our loss is great."  
  
Buffy merely stared at Tara, willing her friend to be the person she   
remembered. She wanted to shake the younger girl. Anne, that was her name   
here?? Lady Anne? And since  
when was Giles her father? Although certainly he acted more like one than   
Hank Summers, ever did. And he was dead? She winced internally. This had   
been weeks and weeks of loss  
for her. This one struck her, even though she knew in her heart that this   
place and people  
were nothing like her own.  
  
" I don't understand, Tara" Buffy said, shaking her head and looking around   
the room. There was an image of her mother, Joyce, at a very young age   
dressed in a blue gown. Another of her mother and Giles together, obviously   
a wedding portrait. Another of herself, painted at around age 5, easily   
recognizable. Another portrait of herself and Dawn. But every one that had   
an image of Giles was covered, in deference to his passing. She walked   
around the room, pulling cloth after cloth down to see the portraits   
underneath. The King at the hunt, in his royal robes, with his family.  
  
"My Lady...." Tara began again,taking her arm and leading her out of the   
room, Buffy staring dazedly after them. "We must get to the Great Hall   
posthaste."  
  
The Great Hall appeared to be the next room after, a monolithic expanse of   
stone with a  
dais draped in black like the rest of the manse. An enormous crowd had   
gathered around the  
dais itself,obscuring it from view. All were imbibing from the wine that was   
being poured  
freely by multiple urn- bearing servants. Tara led her through a throng of   
velvet and satin clad nobles, all who turned to nod gravely at Buffy's   
passing. Many gave her looks of sympathy and laid hands on her in comfort.   
Buffy frowned, until she was presented to the front of the crowd. It parted   
giving her a clear view of the woman on the throne to the left, and the girl   
that sat on the bench at her feet.  
Joyce Summers had never looked so radiant, as she smiled down at Dawn. Even   
though Buffy knew that this woman could not possibly be the woman she had   
been born to, her eyes  
teared up. It took all her strength not throw herself at her, as Joyce   
looked up with obvious joy to see her.  
  
" Lady Anne, at last! " she said and stood up with arms outstretched toward   
Buffy.  
"And we thought we'd see you not today, daughter." Tara nudged her forward   
to take  
her mothers hands, and Buffy just stared up at her.  
  
" I have missed you so much." Buffy said involuntarily, a catch in her   
throat.  
  
" And I you, daughter.." the Queen responded, squeezing her hands warmly. "   
I am  
sorry to call you home so soon, and with such grim tidings. Come, sit with   
your  
sister. The King speaks..."  
  
Buffy's head shot up and she noticed for the first time, the man in the   
Throne.  
Ethan Rayne, or this place's version thereof. A shudder went through her.   
This  
man was King here. The King??  
  
"The King?" she said involuntarily as he turned to face her and reached out   
to pat her  
arm. Under her clothing her skin crawled, as she sat on the dias next to her   
sister at  
her mother's feet. Distracted, she looked at Dawn a moment before reaching   
out to touch  
the soft cheek of her sister. Dawn looked at her curiously a moment before   
smiling, as the  
King began to speak to the assembled crowd.  
  
" We weep for our dear brother's death, in this time of war- with Fortinbras  
as yet bearing down upon us. And so we take to wife, the spouse of our   
brother,the Lady Jocelyn and we mix laughter with tears and secure the   
kingdom. Fortinbras expects us yet  
to be weakened by this fell blow- but we shall remain strong. Tonight we   
welcome home our  
own Lady Anne,my neice now made daughter, and send out our greetings to the   
kingdoms to the  
north, in Norway. Godspeed to our messengers, may you bring us good tidings   
and new alliances. A Toast! "  
  
Raised glasses and cheers welcomed in the new reign and a puzzled Buffy   
declined the goblet  
offered her. It was at this moment that she felt her sisters hand creep into   
her own. Looking back at Dawn she immediately saw the concern there. The   
King has stepped from the  
dias to join the crowd of well-wishers with the Queen at his side.  
  
" It is good that you have come." Dawn whispered. " Things are not as they   
appear, sister.  
Take heart, all will be made clear soon. Slip away when you can, Tara will   
bring you to  
the Solar and we may speak in confidence then."  
  
Stunned, Buffy met Dawn's even and very knowing gaze.  
  
"Dawn...I.." Buffy began frowning.  
  
" Lady Buffy...you must call me Aurora." she replied quickly looking about   
to see if others  
had heard their exchange. For the moment, the princesses of Denmark would   
appear to be left  
to their own devices.  
  
" You know my name!? " Buffy said gripping Aurora's hand tightly. The   
younger girl squeezed her hand in return before answering.  
  
" Of course I do, Slayer- I called you here."  
  
  



End file.
